May 5/01 7:55 am - Gila, Saturn in Denmark, Young Riders in Quebec

Posted by Editor on 05/5/01

Tour of the Gila - New Mexico, USA

Team Rona Report

Silver City, New Mexico, May 5, 2001 - The sprinters had their day at last, and Ina Teutenberg (GER, Saturn Timex) was today's victor in the 34.75-km criterium through the streets of Silver City, with her Australian teammate Anna Millward close behind. Joanne Kiesanowski (NZL, Proctor & Gamble), Lyne Bessette (CAN, Saturn Timex), Geneviève Jeanson (CAN, RONA) and Kim Bruckner (USA, Saturn Timex) crossed the finish line in that order in a group of eight riders, 1'19" after the two leaders. The main pack crossed the line about 2 minutes after Teutenberg, with Amy Jarvis (CAN, RONA) coming in second in the pack sprint.

But with Teutenberg and Millward more than 46 and 19 minutes respectively behind Geneviève Jeanson in the general standings, Jeanson didn't have much to fear from them. Today's stage had very little impact on the general standings - in fact, no impact at all on the placement of the race leaders. Geneviève Jeanson is still holding on to her white leader's jersey and her lead is steady at 7'04" over Bessette and 7'43" over Bruckner.

The stage was fought over twenty laps on a 1.738-km circuit and included four 90 degree turns per lap. The wind was strong again today, as it has been all week. Teutenberg broke away from the pack shortly after the start. A small group of chasers banded together quickly. The group, which included Anna Millward, played cat and mouse with Teutenberg, until Millward joined her teammate and helped her widen the gap in front of the chasers. Toward the end of the course Jeanson and a couple of other sprinters left the pack to join the chasers. The winner maintained an average speed of 38.5 kph (unofficial results).

The final stage, tomorrow, promises even greater challenges with the Gila Monster Road Race, a 106-km loop with start and finish lines near Silver City and a total ascent of 1,667 meters. The stage ends at the peak of one of the course's two Category 4 hills and also includes a Category 2 climb near the end.

Team Saturn Report

After three days of chasing Genevieve Jeanson through the windswept hills of southwestern New Mexico, the Saturn women finally broke free Saturday, claiming three of the top four spots in a 21.6-mile criterium that marked the fourth stage of the Tour of the Gila.

Ina Teutenberg and Anna Millward crossed the line one-two, after setting a high pace throughout the race that no one could match, though several tried. Joanne Kiesanowski of the Procter & Gamble squad barely nipped Saturn's Lyne Bessette at the line to take third. Overall, the 19-year-old Jeanson still has a stranglehold on the top spot, one that she's unlikely to lose in Sunday's final stage, a 66-mile road race that will again feature over 5,000 feet of climbing. Jeanson leads fellow Canadian Bessette by a commanding 7:04 while Kim Bruckner, another Saturn rider, is third overall at 7:43 back.

Teutenberg, a 26-year-old German who makes her home in Park City, Utah, attacked from the gun and was quickly joined by Millward, an Australian who currently is the world's No.1-ranked woman. Different riders tried to keep pace with the Saturn duo, but the two were determined not to be denied a victory, and at one point held a 55-second gap over a group of six chasers.

Saturn in DenmarkCourtesy Team Saturn

AARHUS, Denmark - Mark McCormack finished third and Soren Petersen took two special intermediate sprint competitions in the 195-kilometer GP Midtbank Saturday, kicking off the Saturn Cycling Team's European swing on a strong note.

Petersen, returning to his native country for the first time since joining the Saturn team in January, was in a breakaway that was ahead of the peloton for 150 kilometers. The race featured 17 sections of pavé, and Petersen earned enough points to win two special sprint competitions, one for pavement and one for pavé.

After that first breakaway was caught, a new group of 12 formed, and Petersen again went to work, ferrying two teammates, McCormack and Harm Jansen, to the lead bunch. Eventual winner Rudi Kemna, a Dutch rider from the Bankgiroloterij-Batavus team, slipped away with Arvis Piziks of the CSC Online squad, and the two stayed away to the finish. Saturn's McCormack followed suit and soloed in for a third place finish, 18 seconds behind the winner. Jansen went on to finish ninth, and Michael Barry was eleventh.

The Saturn Team will race the Samsung Mobile GP in Aarhus on Sunday before traveling to Poland on Monday for the start of the Peace Race, May 11-19.